Jets achieved plenty of notable marks in Game 7 victory

The Winnipeg Jets became the 29th current NHL franchise to play in a Game 7 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the 15th to win its first such appearance and the 11th to do so on the road when they defeated the Nashville Predators 5-1 on Thursday in the Western Conference Second Round.
The Jets will face the Vegas Golden Knights in the Western Conference Final, with Game 1 at Winnipeg on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, TVA Sports). It's the first time opponents have reached a conference final since 2003, when the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim swept the Minnesota Wild in four games.

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The Jets and Predators played the 18th Game 7 in the second round since 2009; there has been at least one every year during that span. Winnipeg's victory was the 10th by the visiting team. The first-year Golden Knights and the Columbus Blue Jackets, who entered the NHL in 2000, are the only teams that haven't played a Game 7.
The Predators (53-18-11, 117 points) and Jets (52-20-10, 114 points) finished atop the League standings during the regular season, marking the 15th time in the NHL's expansion era (since 1967-68) that the teams who finished first and second played in the postseason. The winner of the previous 14 series between the top two regular-season finishers went on to capture the Stanley Cup each time. That includes last year, when the Pittsburgh Penguins finished second in the standings but eliminated the Presidents' Trophy-winning Washington Capitals in the Eastern Conference Second Round on their way to the Cup.
The Jets became the fourth team in the past five years to earn a Game 7 victory against the Presidents' Trophy-winning team. They joined the Penguins against the Capitals last year, the Tampa Bay Lightning against the New York Rangers in the 2015 Eastern Conference Final and the Montreal Canadiens against the Boston Bruins in the 2014 Eastern Conference Second Round.
Three of Winnipeg's four wins against Nashville came on the road; in addition to their Game 7 victory, the Jets won 4-1 in Game 1 and 6-2 in Game 5 at Bridgestone Arena. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Jets are the fourth team in NHL history to win at least three road games in a series each by at least three goals. The others: the Detroit Red Wings in the 2010 Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Phoenix (now Arizona) Coyotes; the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2010 Western Conference Semifinals against the Vancouver Canucks; and Pittsburgh in the 2018 Eastern Conference First Round against the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Jets, who lost 4-0 at home in Game 6, are the second team in NHL history to rebound from a Game 6 shutout loss at home with a Game 7 win on the road, according to Elias. Winnipeg joined the Toronto Maple Leafs, who did it against Detroit in the 1945 Final to capture the Stanley Cup.
Jets center Mark Scheifele made some history of his own.

Scheifele leads the League with 11 goals in the playoffs, including seven against the Predators, all of which came at Bridgestone Arena. Scheifele set a playoff record for most road goals in a series, eclipsing the mark of six last accomplished by Marian Gaborik of the Los Angeles Kings in the 2014 Western Conference Second Round against Anaheim.
Jets center Paul Stastny, acquired in a trade with the St. Louis Blues on Feb. 26, had two goals and an assist Thursday, giving him eight points (four goals, four assists) in four NHL Game 7 appearances. His goal at 10:47 of the first period was his second career series-clincher in a Game 7; the other came with the Blues in the 2016 Western Conference Second Round against the Dallas Stars.
Only three active NHL players have more Game 7 points than Stastny: Carolina Hurricanes forward Justin Williams has 14 points (seven goals, seven assists) in seven games; Bruins center Patrice Bergeron has nine points (five goals, four assists) in four games; and Red Wings centerHenrik Zetterberg has nine points (three goals, six assists) in five games. Stastny eclipsed the combined Game 7 totals of his father, Hall of Fame center Peter Stastny (five points; one goal, four assists in five games) and his uncles, forwards Anton Stastny (one assist in three games) and Marian Stastny (one assist in one game).

Paul Stastny's goal came after defenseman Tyler Myers gave the Jets a 1-0 lead at 8:41. Teams that score first in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs are 127-44 (.743), including 1-1 this year.
Jets coach Paul Maurice is 3-0 in three NHL Game 7 appearances. According to Elias, he's the first NHL coach to win his first three Game 7s since Al MacNeil, who won two Game 7s with the Montreal Canadiens in 1971 and a third with the Calgary Flames, when they defeated the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1981 NHL Quarterfinals.